| United Nations | E/1997/16 |
Economic and Social Council
Distr. GENERAL
24 March 1997
ORIGINAL: ENGLISH
Substantive session of 1997
Geneva, 30 June-25 July 1997
Item 7 (a) and (b) of the
provisional agenda*
* E/1997/100, to be issued.
REPORTS, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF SUBSIDIARY BODIES:
ECONOMIC QUESTIONS AND ENVIRONMENTAL QUESTIONS
Transport of dangerous goods
Work of the Committee of Experts on the
Transport of Dangerous Goods
Report of the Secretary-General
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SUMMARY
In accordance with Economic and Social Council resolution
645 G (XXIII), the Secretary-General reports biennially to the Council
on the work of the Committee of Experts on the Transport of Dangerous
Goods. In the present report, the Secretary-General brings to the
attention of the Council the work done by the Committee and its
subsidiary body during the biennium 1995-1996, pursuant to Council
resolutions 1995/5 and 1995/6 and decision 1996/301.
The Committee adopted new and amended recommendations on the
transport of dangerous goods and reviewed its recommendations on the
transport of dangerous goods in multimodal portable tanks. The
Committee also reformatted the ninth revised edition of
Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods into a model
regulation, annexed to a basic recommendation.
In order to give effective follow-up to chapter 19 of Agenda 21,
on the environmentally sound management of toxic chemicals, the
Committee formed joint working groups with the International Labour
Organization in order to develop harmonized criteria for the
classification of chemicals presenting physical hazards. It also cooperated
with other organizations concerned for the development of harmonized
classification criteria for chemicals presenting health hazards or hazards to
the environment.
The Committee considered that, on the basis of its work in the
biennium 1995-1996, the tenth revised edition of the Recommendations
should be published in all the official languages of the United
Nations not later than the end of 1997. However it agreed not to
recommend any date for the implementation of the recommendations. It
also decided that, on the basis of its work in the biennium 1997-1998, a
revised version should be published in 1999, and recommended
that all provisions therein should be implemented by 1 January 2001.
The Committee decided not to take a position at the current time
on future policy regarding the cycle of amendments after 2001.
The Committee included in its work programme for 1997-1998 step
two in the reformatting of the Recommendations into a model
regulation, matters related to explosive substances and articles, and
the global harmonization of systems of classification and labelling.
The Committee is recommending a draft resolution on its work for
adoption by the Council.
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CONTENTS
Paragraphs Page
I. DRAFT RESOLUTION FOR ADOPTION BY THE COUNCIL ......... 1 4
II. WORK OF THE COMMITTEE DURING THE BIENNIUM 1995-1996 .. 2 - 23 7
A. Meetings held .................................... 2 - 5 7
B. Work of the Subcommittee of Experts on the
Transport of Dangerous Goods ..................... 6 - 8 8
C. Follow-up to the United Nations Conference on
Environment and Development ...................... 9 - 13 9
D. Publication of the Recommendations on the
Transport of Dangerous Goods and future
periodicity of amendments ........................ 14 - 18 10
E. Resources ........................................ 19 - 20 11
F. Future work ...................................... 21 11
G. Calendar of meetings for the biennium 1997-1998 .. 22 12
H. Draft resolution on the work of the Committee .... 23 12
I. DRAFT RESOLUTION FOR ADOPTION BY THE COUNCIL
1. The Committee of Experts on the Transport of Dangerous Goods
recommends to the Economic and Social Council the adoption of the
following draft resolution:
DRAFT RESOLUTION
Work of the Committee of Experts on the
Transport of Dangerous Goods
The Economic and Social Council,
Recalling its resolutions 1995/5 and 1995/6 of 19 July 1995,
Recalling also its decision 1996/301 of 26 July 1996 by which it
invited the Committee, when examining the question of periodicity of
amendments to the Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods,
to take fully into account the views expressed by delegations during
the substantive session of 1996 of the Council,
Bearing in mind the increasing volume of dangerous goods in
worldwide commerce and the rapid expansion of technology and
innovation,
Bearing also in mind the continuing need to meet the growing
concern for the protection of life, property and the environment
through the safe transport of dangerous goods, while facilitating
trade,
Aware that, in order to achieve internationally harmonized laws,
the Economic Commission for Europe, the International Maritime
Organization, the International Civil Aviation Organization and other
specialized agencies and international organizations involved in
activities related to the transport of dangerous goods and interested
Member States have responded positively to the Council's various
resolutions adopted since 15 April 1953, and that, being committed to
taking the recommendations of the Committee of Experts on the
Transport of Dangerous Goods as a basis for the formulation of their
requirements and regulations, including those concerning labelling and
classification, those organizations therefore rely on the work of the
Committee,
Aware also of the advice of the Committee to the effect that
reformatting the provisions applicable to all modes of transport
contained in the Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods
1/ into a model regulation, annexed to a basic recommendation, which
could be directly integrated into all modal national and international
regulations would enhance harmonization, facilitate regular updating
of all instruments concerned by the relevant organizations or
regulatory authorities, and result in considerable overall savings for
the Governments of the Member States, the United Nations, the
specialized agencies and other international organizations,
Reconfirming the need for the Committee to participate actively in
relevant activities associated in the implementation of Agenda 21, 2/
as expressed in its resolution 1995/6,
A. Work of the Committee of Experts during the biennium 1995-1996
1. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-General on the work
of the Committee of Experts on the Transport of Dangerous Goods during
the biennium 1995-1996, 3/ and in particular of:
(a) The adoption of new and amended provisions 4/ for inclusion
in the Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods; 1/
(b) The completion of the first step in the reformatting of the
existing Recommendations into a model regulation annexed to a basic
recommendation; 5/
(c) The elaboration, pursuant to resolution 1995/6, of proposals
for criteria for the classification of flammable, explosive and
reactive materials, globally harmonized for various regulatory
purposes, in cooperation with the International Labour Organization in
the context of the implementation of chapter 19 of Agenda 21; and the
concurrence of the Committee with the request from the International
Labour Organization for pursuing the work in 1997-1998 for unresolved
issues on the same basis as in 1995-1996;
2. Commends the Secretary-General for the timely publication of
the ninth revised edition of the Recommendations on the Transport of
Dangerous Goods in all the official languages of the United Nations
and for the publication of the second revised edition of the Manual of
Tests and Criteria in English, French, Spanish and Russian; 6/
3. Requests the Secretary-General:
(a) To circulate the new and amended recommendations to the
Governments of Member States, the specialized agencies, the
International Atomic Energy Agency and other international
organizations concerned;
(b) To publish a consolidated version of the Recommendations, as
amended, 7/ in the reformatted form of a model regulation, annexed to
a basic recommendation, including the new and amended recommended
provisions, in all the official languages of the United Nations, in
the most cost-effective manner, not later than the end of 1997;
(c) To expedite the publication, in the most cost-effective
manner, of the second revised edition of the Manual of Tests and
Criteria in Arabic and Chinese;
4. Invites all Governments, the specialized agencies, the
International Atomic Energy Agency and the other international
organizations concerned to transmit to the Secretary-General their
views on the Committee's work, together with any comments that they
may wish to make on the amended recommendations;
5. Invites all interested Governments, regional commissions and
specialized agencies and the international organizations concerned,
when developing or updating appropriate codes and regulations, to take
full account of the recommendations, including the structure and
format of such codes and regulations;
B. Programme of work for the biennium 1997-1998
6. Approves the programme of work of the Committee and its
Subcommittee for the biennium 1997-1998 and the working arrangements
and the priorities of work for that biennium, as follows:
(a) Global harmonization of systems of classification and
labelling of chemicals (implementation of chapter 19 of Agenda 21), in
accordance with Council resolution 1995/6;
(b) Second step in the reformatting of the Recommendations on the
Transport of Dangerous Goods into a model regulation;
(c) New or revised recommendations on the transport of dangerous
goods;
7. Requests the Secretary-General to take all necessary steps
for ensuring secretariat representation of the Committee at
appropriate meetings of international organizations committed to
implementing the recommendations of the Committee or involved in the
process of global harmonization of classification and labelling
systems for chemicals;
C. Periodicity of amendments to the Recommendations
8. Takes note of the advice of the Committee that:
(a) A new and revised version of the Recommendations should be
published after completion of the second step of reformatting - that
is, in 1999, after the 1998 session of the Committee;
(b) The new and revised version should be implemented by the
various international organizations concerned with the transport of
dangerous goods through their respective modal instruments
by 1 January 2001;
(c) No firm decision as regards a possible future four-year
periodicity of amendments should be taken as long as the processes of
reformatting the Recommendations into a model regulation, annexed to a
basic recommendation, and of global harmonization of systems of
classification and labelling of chemicals for the implementation of
Agenda 21 have not been completed;
9. Invites the Committee to reconsider the issue at its 1998
session;
D. Report to the Council
10. Requests the Secretary-General to submit a report to the
Council in 1999 on the implementation of the present resolution.
II. WORK OF THE COMMITTEE DURING THE BIENNIUM 1995-1996
A. Meetings held
2. After the substantive session of the Economic and Social Council
in 1995, the following meetings were held:
(a) Subcommittee of Experts on the Transport of Dangerous Goods:
tenth session, 10-20 July 1995 (ST/SG/AC.10/C.3/20, Corr.1 and Add.1);
eleventh session, 4-15 December 1995 (ST/SG/AC.10/C.3/22 and Add.1-2);
twelfth session, 1-12 July 1996 (ST/SG/AC.10/C.3/24 and Add.1-3);
(b) Committee of Experts on the Transport of Dangerous Goods:
nineteenth session, 2-10 December 1996 (ST/SG/AC.10/23 and Add.1-4).
3. The following 21 countries participated in the work of the
Committee and of its Subcommittee as full members: 8/ Argentina;
Australia; Belgium; Brazil; Canada; China; France; Germany; India;
Italy; Japan; Mexico; Morocco; Netherlands; Norway; Poland; Russian
Federation; Spain, Sweden; United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Northern Ireland; and United States of America. The Governments of
Austria, Czech Republic, Finland, Islamic Republic of Iran,
New Zealand, Nigeria, Panama, Portugal, Slovakia, South Africa,
Switzerland, Tunisia and Ukraine were represented by observers. The
Commission of the European Communities and 26 specialized agencies and
intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations also
participated.
4. Liaison was maintained with the international bodies or
organizations responsible for individual modes of transport, in
particular, the Economic Commission for Europe (ECE) (for inland
transport in the ECE region), the International Civil Aviation
Organization (ICAO), the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and
the Central Office for International Carriage by Rail.
5. The Committee paid special attention to the coordination of its
own activities with those of other international organizations whose
activities impinge on the field of transport of dangerous goods, such
as the International Labour Organization (ILO), the World Health
Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Environment Programme
(UNEP), to ensure that their work would complement, rather than
duplicate or clash with, existing agreements and instruments on the
safe transport of dangerous goods.
B. Work of the Subcommittee of Experts on the
Transport of Dangerous Goods
6. During the biennium 1995-1996, the Subcommittee discussed, as
usual, various miscellaneous questions related to its terms of
reference but gave priority, in accordance with Council resolution
1995/5, to:
(a) Global harmonization of classification criteria
(implementation of chapter 19 of Agenda 21) (see sect. C below);
(b) Reformatting of the Recommendations on the Transport of
Dangerous Goods into a model regulation, annexed to a basic
recommendation;
(c) Review of the recommendations on the transport of dangerous
goods in multimodal portable tanks.
7. A complete revised set of recommended provisions concerning the
design, construction, inspection, testing and approval of portable
tanks (tank-containers) intended for the transport of liquid and solid
dangerous substances, non-refrigerated liquefied gases, and
refrigerated liquefied gases was elaborated. That work was done with
due regard to the existing and foreseeable future development of
multimodal international transport using containerization techniques
and the fact that, in the course of international transport, a
portable tank may be subjected to different climatic conditions and
different types of stresses owing to the successive types of means of
transport used for carrying it. The Committee adopted the provisions
prepared by the Subcommittee, subject to further refinement of
provisions concerning gases in the biennium 1997-1998.
8. The Recommendations were rearranged in the form of a model
regulation, annexed to a basic recommendation. In a second step,
during the biennium 1997-1998, it will be necessary to supplement the
new version with a number of new provisions, such as detailed packing
instructions for individual substances and other provisions normally
found in instruments regulating the transport of dangerous goods by
one given mode, so that the model regulation can be directly
integrated into national or international instruments, without
substantial redrafting.
C. Follow-up to the United Nations Conference on
Environment and Development
9. In accordance with General Assembly resolutions 47/190 and 47/191
and Council resolution 1995/6, the Committee continued to give
effective follow-up to Agenda 21, in particular to chapter 19, on the
environmentally sound management of toxic chemicals.
10. In accordance with the recommendations of chapter 19, the
Committee cooperated with other organizations concerned with chemical
safety, in particular those participating in the Interorganizational
Programme for the Sound Management of Chemicals (IOMC), the United
Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the International Labour
Organization (ILO), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the
United Nations (FAO), the World Health Organization (WHO), the United
Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the Organization
for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the
Intergovernmental Forum on Chemical Safety. The main area of
cooperation was the development of a globally harmonized system of
classification and labelling of dangerous products.
11. In accordance with Council resolution 1995/6, joint working groups
of experts in the classification of chemicals presenting physical
hazards (flammability and reactivity) were convened in consultation
with ILO during each session of the Subcommittee. The working groups
developed proposals for globally harmonized classification criteria on
the basis of existing internationally recognized classification
regimes for flammable liquids, flammable solids and flammable gases,
explosives and desensitized explosives, organic peroxides, oxidising
substances, pyrophoric substances, self-reactive substances, and
substances reacting with water giving off flammable gases, and those
proposals were adopted by the Committee. The report on the work of
the working groups 9/ was presented by the IOMC secretariat, together
with a progress report from OECD on harmonized classification criteria
for health hazards, to the Intergovernmental Forum on Chemical Safety
at its second session (Ottawa, 10-14 February 1997), where ways and
means to implement the global harmonized system were discussed.
12. The working groups of experts could not complete the work they had
been assigned; no final conclusion could be reached in certain cases.
Therefore on a proposal by ILO, the Committee agreed that joint
meetings of experts should be convened again in 1997 during the
sessions of the Subcommittee, to resolve outstanding issues and
complete the harmonization proposals.
13. The Committee cooperated with OECD to ensure that the criteria
developed by that organization, designated by IOMC as the focal point
for health hazards and hazards to the environment, were suitable for
transport regulation purposes. Further work would be needed in that
area in 1997.
D. Publication of the Recommendations on the Transport of
Dangerous Goods and future periodicity of amendments
14. As requested by the Council in resolution 1995/5, the Secretary-
General prepared the ninth revised edition of the Recommendations on
the Transport of Dangerous Goods 1/ on the basis of the recommendations
adopted by the Committee at its eighteenth session. 10/ The edition
was published for official circulation and sale in Arabic
(260 copies), Chinese (105 copies), English (7,710 copies), French
(1,495 copies), Russian (180 copies) and Spanish (575 copies). It is
also available on electronic support (diskettes).
15. The secretariat also published the second revised edition of the
Manual of Tests and Criteria, 6/ in English (3,810 copies), French
(1,040 copies), Spanish (470 copies) and Russian (180 copies).
The Committee requested that the Arabic and Chinese versions, which
were still in preparation but should be available for the Council at
its substantive session in 1997, be published expeditiously.
16. The Committee requested the secretariat to prepare the tenth
revised edition of the Recommendations on the basis of its work in the
biennium 1995-1996 and the texts adopted at its nineteenth session and
to publish it in the form of a model regulation, annexed to a basic
recommendation, in the most effective manner, without delay, in all
official languages of the United Nations and not later than the end
of 1997.
17. The question of periodicity of amendments to the Recommendations
was raised by the Secretary-General of IMO in a letter addressed to
the Secretary-General of the United Nations which was brought to the
attention of the Council at its substantive session in 1996, 11/
where it was proposed that the publication cycle be expanded from
every two years to every four years. In its decision 1996/301, the
Council, noting that the Committee would examine the question at its
nineteenth session, invited the Committee to take fully into account
the views expressed by delegations at the substantive session of the
Council in 1996.
18. The Committee decided not to recommend any precise date for the
implementation of the provisions contained in the tenth revised
version of the Recommendations. It also decided that an eleventh
edition should be published in 1999, on the basis of its work in the
biennium 1997-1998, but recommended that all provisions contained
therein should be implemented by 1 January 2001. The Committee decided
not to take a position at the current time on future policy regarding
the cycle of amendments after 2001, since several experts thought it
preferable to reconsider the question in 1998 in the light of the
progress made in the global harmonization of systems of classification
and labelling of chemicals and in the process of restructuring the
various modal instruments concerned on the basis of the model
regulations.
E. Resources
19. As requested in Council resolution 1995/5, appropriate staff
resources were maintained for the servicing of meetings related to the
work of the Committee and its Subcommittee. The secretariat functions
are performed by the secretariat of the Economic Commission for
Europe.
20. Bearing in mind the role of the secretariat in the implementation
of the Recommendations, through cooperation with the secretariats of
those international organizations to which the Recommendations are
directed and those cooperating in the process of global harmonization
of classification and labelling systems, the Committee recommended, in
its draft resolution, that the Council request the Secretary-General
to take all necessary steps for ensuring secretariat representation of
the Committee at appropriate meetings of those international
organizations.
F. Future work
21. The Committee agreed that the programme of work for the biennium
1997-1998 should be as follows:
(a) Global harmonization of systems of classification and
labelling of chemicals;
(b) Reformatting of the Recommendations on the Transport of
Dangerous Goods (second step):
(i) Revision of the first version of the model regulation annexed
to the tenth revised edition of the Recommendations - in
particular as regards portable tanks for gases, a
rationalized approach for assigning portable tank
requirements, and additional marking of tanks;
(ii) Development of additional requirements - in particular,
segregation requirements, consignment procedures, packing
instructions, introduction of class-7 provisions;
(c) New or revised recommendations on the transport of dangerous
goods, including:
(i) Consideration of miscellaneous new proposals concerning
subjects approved by the Committee (definitions and criteria
for the tightness of packagings and intermediate bulk
containers (IBCs); reuse, reconditioning and remanufacturing
of IBCs; packing of articles; substances toxic by inhalation;
possible classification of desensitized explosives as
flammable liquids; large packagings; aerosol dispensers;
listing and classification of new dangerous goods);
(ii) Matters related to explosive substances and articles; Test
6(c); United Nations pressure vessel test.
G. Calendar of meetings for the biennium 1997-1998
22. The Committee proposed that its twentieth session be held from 7
to 16 December 1998. The Subcommittee of Experts should meet three
times: from 7 to 17 July 1996, from 8 to 19 December 1997, and from
29 June to 10 July 1998.
H. Draft resolution on the work of the Committee
23. The Committee approved a draft resolution (see sect. I) entitled
"Work of the Committee of Experts on the Transport of Dangerous Goods"
for recommendation for adoption by the Economic and Social Council.
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Notes
1/ United Nations publication, Sales No. E.95.VIII.1.
2/ Report of the United Nations Conference on Environment and
Development, Rio de Janeiro, 3-14 June 1992 (A/CONF.151/26/Rev.1 (Vol.
I and Vol. I/Corr.1, Vol. II, Vol. III and Vol. III/Corr.1)) (United
Nations publication, Sales No. E.93.I.8 and corrigenda), vol. I:
Resolutions Adopted by the Conference, resolution 1, annex II.
3/ E/1997/16.
4/ See ST/SG/AC.10/23/Add.1.
5/ ST/SG/AC.10/23/Add.2.
6/ United Nations publication, Sales No. E.95.VIII.2.
7/ ST/SG/AC.10/1/Rev.10.
8/ Australia and Spain became full members of the Committee pursuant
to Economic and Social Council decision 1996/3__ of 22 November 1996.
9/ ST/SG/AC.10/23/Add.4.
10/ ST/SG/AC.10/21 and Add.1-3.
11/ E/1996/15.
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